A normal user's look into the world of 3D Stereo Technologies

Today I’ve finally got my Dual-Link DVI splitter cable and was very eager to compare the two 22-inch 120Hz LCD Monitors – Samsung 2233RZ and ViewSonic VX2268wm using the splitter instead of the two VGA outputs in clone mode. I’ve heard that testing with the two outputs and clone mode is not a good idea if you want to achieve relevant data, but instead you should rely on signal splitter cable and a single video output. But until today I was not completely sure if these two methods really give some difference, but after testing with the splitter cable things got more than clear for me. Testing with the two video cards outputs, connecting both displays to them, and setting the display mode to clone is not suitable for input lag testing at all, because it does give results that are way off from the real ones…

This video shows the two 22-inch 120Hz LCD monitors side by side, connected with an Dual-Link DVI splitter cable to a single output of the video card in order to check if there is actually a difference in terms of input lag between the two displays. The video was shot at 240 fps in order to catch even small differences (use the pause button to compare), but the numbers on the timer stay the same on both monitors, meaning that neither one has more or less input lag than the other one. So in the end both LCDs actually perform the same when talking about the presence of input lag, so no advantages for choosing either of them just because of having less input lag than the other. Meaning that when choosing you should consider features and design to get the one you prefer better or suites your design taste more.

When the analog video splitter arrives I’ll also do an updated comparison between these two 120Hz LCD monitors and a good old CRT display to actually measure the input lag of these displays compared to an old CRT….

By specifications the Samsung 2233RZ in stand by mode (DPMS) should use less than 1W, which you can consider right on the point – the watt meter I’ve used jumped between zero and 1 watt, although when I took the picture it was showing 1W. So right on the spot with the standby power usage in the specifications and in real world usage… one watt is not that much, but still you better turn of the display when you are not going to use it for longer periods of time.

Now, the power consumption of the monitor when it is turned on and working was a bit more interesting, because it’s specifications state that is uses 50W typical. The watt meter was showing 45W power consumption and that is with the settings being forced to be like when in 3D mode (100 for brightness, 75 for contrast), so Samsung 2233RZ is actually consuming less power than specs state, which is also very good.